Sanctuary
by Skye-Yue
Summary: A puzzleshipping take on what happened after Yami Marik was defeated. Slight Angst, Lemon, Lime. YYXY YOU HAVE BEEN WARNED.


**_Skye-Yue: This is a one-shot due to a lack of inspiration for my other stories. Enjoy. The first part of it is taken from the last episode of Marik and Yami's duel, with a bit of the dialogue changed around a bit to make it somewhat more puzzleship-y. The second part is from when Kaiba blows up the Island, and the Battle City Tournament Arc is concluded._**

* * *

Marik's horrifying howl of laughter rang throughout Yami's unnaturally solitary mind. It was finals of Kaiba's Battle City Tournament: Yugi vs. Marik. Once the battle had started, Marik had took the duel into the Shadow Realm, and as Yugi and his friends knew, there would be some sort of catch to his game. However, no one suspected what Marik had planned to do.

He separated Yugi and Yami, binding the smaller teen to a wall of shadows. Marik reciprocated the act though, and separated himself and Malik. The only emotional difference was that Yami actually cared for his partner, his vessel in the modern world, whereas Marik did not. It was both a strategical, and personal blow to the dueling duo. Separated, they could not come together in their minds to discuss a strategy. Here, in the Shadow Realm, their mind link could be exposed if they weren't careful; their most personal thoughts and conversations to one another readable by a psychotic madman who would do anything to destroy the pharaoh. Not only that, but for every life point that Yami lost, parts of Yugi's body were devoured, ripped away by the shadows. Yami could only watch in horror as his mistakes cost him bits and pieces of his precious Aibou's very being, body, and soul.

And Yami himself was completely to blame. He let this happen, he let this get too far. He-

"What are you waiting for?" Marik chuckled manically once more, the golden eye of Horus blatant on his head. "It's your turn. So why don't you attack me, Pharaoh? It _is_ your move."

Yami seethed. He had told himself he'd do anything to win, to stop Marik at any cost, to retrieve everyone Marik had already sent to the Shadow Realm, to free everyone from the paralyzing grip of fear Marik had on them all... but he realized how wrong he was. Marik was down to 700 life points, but his hikari, Malik, was barely conscious, all that was left of him was the majority of his face. His left eye had been gouged out by the shadows, but the skin around the empty socket was still intact.

Was it worth it though? To risk everything on the life of one person, a person who loathed and despised him in the first place? Yami considered simply taking the initiative and attacking, cleansing Marik of his life points and Malik of his life.

He shouldn't. He couldn't. He wouldn't. It wouldn't be right. He had promised Ishizu the safe return of her younger brother, and any promise the spirit made, he intended to keep. His mind raced with thoughts, though all of them devoid of a shining answer. It wasn't until Yugi mentally called out to him that Yami snapped out of his trance.

_/Hey! I think I've got an idea!/_

Yami glanced up to the petite boy as he hung bound to the wall, not verbally nor mentally responding, simply letting his eyes do the talking so that they could retain most of their energy to keeping Marik out of their weakened link.

_/Remember how Marik fused himself with his monster?/_

Yami nodded slowly, trying not to tip of their demented opponent to their conversation.

_/I bet he's planning on doing that again! He's building up his life points so when he merges with The Winged Dragon of Ra he'll be unstoppable and finish us off! But, that also means that Marik becomes the monster **himself!**/_

Yami's eyes widened as he and Yugi shared the same thought. _Giving him all the weaknesses of a monster!_

_/And **that** could be our only hope!/_

Marik rolled his eyes he knew the two were planning something, but why ruin the fun? Give them a bit of hope, so he could pulverize it before their very eyes. "Make your final move, Pharaoh."

Yugi narrowed his eyes at Marik, before giving Yami a bit of moral support. _/We can do this!/ _A nod in Yami's direction gave him the heave-ho to start.

"I'll start by placing two cards facedown," Yami's booming baritone voice announced, "then I'll summon Gazelle, the King of Mythical Beasts!" The brown, horned, quadruped monster sat loyally before his master; 1500 attack points, 1200 defense points. "With that, I end my turn."

"Not quite!" A cynical look overcame the possessed Egyptian, and he smirked evilly. "It doesn't end until my Bowganian takes 300 of your life points! So!" Marik waved a hand as his Bowganian, a small, spiked, legless green figure with a single eyeball drew his bow and arrow, waiting for his command. "Activate your special ability, my beast!"

With that, the fiend released his bow, sending the spiked arrow straight through Yami's heart. Yami groaned with pain, clutching the clothes that covered his heart. Yes, the card game was made of holograms, but in the Shadow Realm, everything felt real. The pain Yami felt was extreme, searing. He winced as his life points dropped from 1000 to 700, equal to that of Marik.

"Now," Marik yelled, "You lose a little bit more of your Hikari, Pharaoh! Watch as he is devoured by the shadows!"

Yami could only watch as Yugi screamed in pain, his body slowly dissipating as the shadows consumed him. Tears gathered in the smaller teens eyes as parts of his face was gnawed away, his right eye gone. All that was left of the boy was his hands, his feet, and approximately 3/4 of his face.

"Yugi..." Yami said strained as he raggedly turned to face his partner. "Aibou, I promise... I promise I won't let you slip away!"

"You have no choice!" Marik sneered. "In just a few short moments, Yugi will be gone!"

Yami's eyes widened at that. No. He wouldn't let this monster take away the only light in his life, the only one who cared for him...

"You can do it, Yugi!"

"Yeah, we're righ' behin' ya, Yug'!"

"That's right!"

"Take him down!""

As Yugi's friends offered their words of support, Marik laughed once more. "Idiots! It's my move!" A devious chuckle escaped the deranged man as he drew his card, and glanced down at it. _This will come in handy later..._ "But first, I have other things to take care of! And I'll send whatever's left of your little whore to the Shadow Realm with this!"

An animalistic sneer overcame Yami. "Marik..." His aibou was NOT a whore. How DARE he have the audacity to speak of Yugi in such a way. Yami nearly lashed out, losing it then and there, if Yugi hadn't stopped him.

_/Don't! He's not worth it! He's doing it to get a reaction out of you, Yami./_

**_/I know, Aibou... I promise, I'll make him pay for what he said. No one speaks of you like that!/_**Through gritted teeth, Yami spoke. "Just go...!"

"Of course, Pharaoh. But first, my Spike Worm's special ability grants me 1000 extra life points!" He laughed once more as his life points went from 700 to 1700, then he spoke once more. "And now, I'll activate the card that will end this duel! Monster Reborn!" A blinding white light emerged from Marik's graveyard. "It's over!"

The light encapsulated him, making it seem as though he was shining. "And how, I shall revive my Winged Dragon of Ra in its most devastating form, ever!" The dragon morphed into a bird of light, and Yami took a step back.

"Egyptian God Phoenix...!"

Now it was God against God, Ra against Obelisk. The golden entity stared down the blue behemoth, the two locked in visual combat.

"Next," Marik exclaimed. "I'll give up 1000 life points to activate Ra's special ability!" As his life points dwindled back to 700, his pupils became dilated to half their size. "Now! My Great Beast of the Sky!" Upon being called, Ra let loose a fearsome roar. "DESTROY HIS OBELISK!"

Ra charged, intent on the kill, until interrupted by Yami. "No! That won't work!" Ra collided headfirst into Obelisk, and upon impact, Obelisk began glowing, Ra's golden aura radiating off of him.

Marik burst into psychotic laughter, disregarding what Yami said. "Fool! Your life points are wide open! Obelisk is gon- What? What's this?" Through the flames of Ra's wake, Obelisk stood proud and tall, unwaivered by the attack. "Impossible!" An entity appeared around Obelisk, coiling around his body. The figure then came into the light, its red scaly skin shining adamantly. "What? Slifer the Sky Dragon? Where the hell did he come from, Pharaoh?"

Yami stood angrily through the flames, the golden eye of Horus now upon his forehead as well. "While you were calling out your attack, I activated a magic card to protect Obelisk the Tormentor! So I played..." Yami threw a hand across the air, and a facedown card flipped face up, revealing itself to be... "Monster Reborn!"

Marik sneered. This wasn't part of his plan...

"I used it to revive Slifer, and save Obelisk!"

From below, Tristan pumped his fist into the air. "Awesome! He used one Egyptian God as a shield to save another!"

"Yeah!" Joey agreed. "Leave it ta Yug' to pull offa move like dat!"

Even Kaiba commented on Yami's performance. "Quite impressive. He saved himself. At least, for now..."

"Seto?" Mokuba asked, glancing at his brother for a second, before looking back to the dueling field. "If Slifer was hit by Ra, then doesn't that mean..." Before he could finish, Slifer slowly disappeared from the field. "So Obelisk escaped without a scratch!" The blue behemoth roared in triumph, displaying his fearsome red eyes, and jagged white canines. "But... I wonder... What's Yugi going to do now...?"

Inside, Yami was screaming at them. He wasn't Yugi! Couldn't they see that? Couldn't they see Yugi, or what was left of him really, bound to the wall? Couldn't they understand that there was Yugi, and then himself?

Of course they could. Yami knew Seto refused to acknowledge the fact that there was both himself and Yugi, living in one body. Mokuba, he didn't know. Did the child understand of Yami's foreign presence, or did he follow in his brother's beliefs? Most possibly the latter of the two. As for Yugi's friends, they called him Yugi whenever he dueled. While this was normally to protect Yugi's image in public, here everyone knew Yugi and Yami were two different people, just in one body. Why wouldn't they acknowledge Yugi as himself? Why didn't-

"It's time for Ra to return to the graveyard." Marik announced, interrupting Yami's thoughts. The dragon phoenix let out a cry, before being absorbed back into Marik's graveyard. Once gone, Marik glared at Yami, the eye of Horus on Marik's head shining brighter than ever now. "My great beast may be gone, but I assure you, he'll be back."

Yami sneered, the eye of Horus that was on his head gone at this point. "We'll see..."

"Yes, we will!" Marik proclaimed, his voice coming off a bit tauntingly. "My Egyptian God Card will return to the field sooner than you think! I'm about to give my dragon a second chance, by turning the tide, and allowing my dragon to attack once more again! And it's all thanks to THIS magic card!" Marik revealed the card he drew, which had an image of two iron-clad knights on it, one out running the other. "Have you ever seen it?"

Yami's eyes widened. "Surprise Attack from Beyond!"

Marik smirked. "Well. I suppose I'll take your response as a 'yes'. This card allows me to replay the attack I just did against Obelisk!"

"No!" Yami said, death gleaming in his eyes.

"'Ey, Psycho! Yug' already won dat attack! Dat's a real cheap move, Marik." Joey said, his hand curling into a fist.

Marik rolled his eyes, then raised his hand above his graveyard. "Arise, my Winged Dragon of Ra!" As the golden light poured out of Marik's graveyard, he glanced to Yami. "This time, you have NO way to defend yourself, _Pharaoh_." The word 'Pharaoh' was said bitterly, tauntingly. Marik then chuckled as Ra emerged from his deck in a blinding light, causing all but Yami and Kaiba to shield their eyes. "Behold the return of my Egyptian God!"

"It's locked in that sphere of light!" Yugi exclaimed with what little strength he had left. His sudden outburst was noticed by Yami, who turned to face the smaller boy.

**_/Aibou, save your strength. Do not speak./_**

"You are correct, little Yugi." Marik said. "And only I can release it! So stand back as I recite the ancient chant to unlock Ra!"

He crossed his hands over his chest, his wild demeanor turning eerily serious.  
"Great Beast of the Sky,  
Hear my cry.  
Transform thyself from form of light,  
and bring me victory in this fight!  
Envelop the desert in your glow  
and cast your rage upon my foe!"

Ra had unraveled itself completely at this point, and roared loudly, the blue gem on its head shining.

"Play this game as I call your name,  
Winged Dragon of Ra!"

* * *

"Now, with my Dark Magician and my Dark Magician Girl on the field, I activate my Ragnarok!" Yami said, his baritone voice booming throughout the field.

"No!" Marik yelled in denial. First Odion showed up, then Malik regained control of their body, now this? Impossible!

"Yes!" Yami said back, tauntingly. "Since my Dark Magician, and my Dark Magician Girl both on the field, the unstoppable magic of Ragnarok can be released!" Yami then grabbed his deck from its slot, and turned stoic. "But first, I must remove every monster from my hand, deck, and graveyard from play."

"Hnn... Hnn...!" Marik held his head as he fought Malik for control of their body, and he screamed at the Pharaoh. "No! Don't do it! You're making a mistake!"

"No, Marik! I'm afraid it's too late!" The Ragnarok card shined a brilliant gold, then vanished. In its place, however, purple orbs of light rose from the ground, and the Shadow Realm went from a disturbing black and purple color to a pale yellow-orange and gold, like an arriving sunrise. "Ragnarok is already infused with the power of every one of my monsters!"

An apparition of Slifer and Obelisk rose among the orbs, both creatures obviously ticked. Once the remaining Egyptian Gods made their appearance, all the purple orbs morphed into the entirety of Yami and Yugi's monsters. Red Eyes Black Dragon, Jack's Knight, King's Knight, Queen's Knight, Alpha, Beta, and Gamma, the Magnet Warriors, Celtic Guardian, Buster Blader, and a whole slew of monster arose. All of which, were lead by the only monsters still in play, Dark Magician, and Dark Magician Girl.

"Now, my Dark Magicians, and the rest of my monster army! Unleash your incredible force!" At that, all the monsters flew and attached to Ra, sending him, along with nearly all of Marik, into the abyss of the Shadow Realm. As the shadows swallowed up the Golden God, the Shadow Realm went back to its natural black and purple color. Yami's Magicians settled back onto the field as a whirlwind of power settled down to where Marik once stood.

Téa's voice came from the bleak silence. "Does that mean that Yugi won...?"

"Not yet." Kaiba announced bluntly. "Marik still has one life point left. This duel isn't over."

Yami stood at attention, expecting some sort of laughter or comment from Marik, but nothing. "Yugi." Yugi looked over to Yami once he heard his name. "Destroying the Winged Dragon of Ra should have destroyed Marik as well."

"Yeah..." Yugi nodded a bit weakly, feeling the entirety of the situation and the drain of energy the battle had cost him finally taking its toll. "B-But... What about his good side?"

Yami stiffened slightly as he heard Yugi reply vocally, the weariness in his voice shining through. Not wanting him to use up anymore energy, Yami ended the conversation right there with, "We'll see."

After what seemed like an eternity, the whirlwind disappeared, and Malik stood weakly in place, in the same clothes that Marik wore, his body intact.

"He made it!" Yami exclaimed as his victory smirk made a brief appearance before becoming serious once more. "Malik. It's over. Your evil half is gone, forever."

Malik weakly looked to Yami and nodded, breathing heavily, the Shadow Realm doing a harsh number on his frail body.

"Brother!" Ishizu cried. "You're saved!"

From the side, Tristan leaned over to Joey. "We're sure this is his good side, right?"

Joey shrugged. "Well, his face ain't as weird lookin' now."

"P-Pharaoh..." Malik's hand balled into a fist as he gripped the cape around him. "Th-There is still one more task that you and I must... must complete...!" Malik threw off the cape, an act that Yami himself did to Yugi's jacket when he was ready to duel. Malik's voice became a bit more clear. "I still have one life point left."

"What?" Yami asked, confounded. Was Malik really going to duel him still?

"H-He's right, Yami. We're not done...!" Yugi's voice came more strained than before.

"Yugi, cease your speaking. If your energy depletes, there is no guarantee I can spare you from the shadows. Aibou, please." Yami's eyes filled with an emotion only Yugi would ever see, and he nodded in response.

"Alright, Malik." Yami stated in a clear, but somewhat soft tone. "It's your move."

Malik nodded and closed his eyes. "I'm sorry, Pharaoh. It was my duty to help you, and what did I do instead?" He turned to look at his brother and sister, an honest look of regret in his eyes. He spoke once more, speaking to Yami, but still looking at his family. "I turned my back on you and my family. I can't change the past, but I can start over right here, by embracing my family legacy. I'm proud to be a tombkeeper, and I'm proud of my sister Ishizu, and my brother Odion. My family has waited 5000 years for your return, and now you're here. I must fulfill my destiny." At this, he turned back to Yami, and a hand went to his duel disk, seeming as though he would draw a card. "By letting you fulfill yours!" Instead of drawing, he placed a hand over the duel disk, and lied it flat.

"No! You can't do this!" Marik's evil voice of temptation wafted into Malik's ears, but Malik simply closed his eyes.

"I must. I hold the key to helping the Pharaoh unlock his true powers. The secret is imprinted upon my back in an ancient Egyptian text. But before I can reveal it to him, he must possess all three Egyptian Gods."

"You're making a huge mistake, fool!"

Malik shook his head. "No. For the first time in years, I'm making the right choice."

"Cease! What do you think you're doing?"

Malik frowned. "I am honoring the Ishtar name, by surrendering the duel!" With that, Malik pressed on his duel disk, and a white light emerged around him.

Yami nodded in understanding. "Of course. By forfeiting the duel, his life points will drop down to 0, and his evil half will vanish completely, to be devoured by the Shadow Realm."

"If you do this," came Marik's voice, "you'll be sorry! You need me!"

"Begone!" Malik cried. "I surrender this duel to the Pharaoh!"

With a scream of pain and terror, Marik was consumed wholly into the shadows, gone from Malik Ishtar's life, forever.

"It's finally over, my Pharaoh."

"Yes." Yami said, nodding once more in agreement. "And the darkness has lifted." As he spoke that last part, he looked over to his precious Hikari and smiled thankfully as his body was restored, the petite boy being whole again once more.

"We did it!" Yugi was nothing more than a spirit at the moment, but he ran to and hugged his darker half, burying his face in his chest. "We won the duel!"

"Thank the Gods, Aibou..." Yami spoke softly, for only Yugi to hear. "You're safe. You're safe now..."

* * *

"GRAH! When I find Pretty Boy, he's TOAST!" Joey yelled. After Yami had emerged victorious in his duel with Marik, Kaiba rigged Battle City Island to blow. However, the teen billionaire and his younger brother were no where to be found. Not only that, but the blimp that brought everyone to the site of the finals refused to start its engines. Tristan sighed, shaking his head, thinking on what to do next, and Yami simply stood, his mind racing.

Yugi appeared beside the Pharaoh as a spirit, a look of concern on his face. _"With Kaiba missing, and our ride home on the fritz, we'll never escape that explosion!"_

"We've got to have faith." Yami replied. "I saved you many times before, Yugi. I don't intend to let an explosion finish us off, when the Shadow Realm should have had that pleasure ages ago." His crimson eyes flashed a brief display of possession. "I refuse to let anything happen to you."

"Hey man..." Yugi let Tristan's voice distract him as he looked towards his two friends, Yami following suit. Tristan put a hand on Joey's shoulder. "Maybe you should just calm down."

"Calm down? CALM DOWN? Dis whol' friggin place is gonna blow sky high, an' wer' stuck here wit' no way out!" Joey practically threw his hands in the air from frustration. Yami understood how he felt. Joey had just gotten his little sister back to him, and he knew Joey didn't want to lose her, someone so close to him...

"Who knows?" Téa said, coming out of no where behind Yami. "Maybe the ship's engines were fixed."

"HEY!"

All heads turned to see who yelled at them. "It's Duke!" Yami said, giving a slight jerk of his head towards the direction of the voice. "And Ryou!"

"Dis bettah be good news...!" Joey muttered as he, Yami, Tristan, and Téa ran to meet Duke Devlin and Ryou Bakura midway. "Well guys? What's up wit' the engines?"

"They're still not working!" Duke said, a die earring lightly rocking back and forth from the slight breeze. "We need more time!"

"We don't have more time!" Replied Tristan, balling a fist angrily.

"There is only 12 minutes left!" Piped up one of Kaiba's henchmen.

"You know what? Leave dis ta me." Joey said as he ran to the blimp.

"Joey, wait!" Téa cried out, cupping her hands over her mouth to needlessly amplify the sound of her voice. "Since when can you fix an engine?"

"D'aww, come on!" Joey scoffed as he ran, his voice full of arrogance. "How hard can it be?" He chuckled as he reached the undercarriage of the blimp, though his smirk and prideful demeanor both vanished as he gazed upon the many coils and wires that made up the blimp's interior. He then chuckled once more, though awkwardly this time, and ran back to the others. "I jus' rememb'ahed, I don't wan' get mah hands dirty righ' now."

"Call me crazy," Ryou spoke up, his soft British accent breaking through the other's voices. "but couldn't we use that copter right there?" He pointed to a lone copter simply laying there.

"My thoughts exactly!" Joey said with a proud smirk.

Within minutes, everyone gathered on board, that is except for Seto and Mokuba. "Any luck?" Asked a crony.

The opposing henchman shook his head. "Well, we can't wait. Take off now!" Though everyone opposed, the men started the chopper, and lifted off the ground. Yugi appeared beside Yami once more, fear and panic running rampant in his eyes.

_"Yami! What about Kaiba and Mokuba? Where are they?"_

Yami merely shook his head, not looking directly at Yugi. Yugi gasped, and clutched onto Yami, burying his face into the Pharaoh's solid chest. Yami wrapped a hand around the transparent smaller teen, his gaze portraying a dull sadness. "How foolish, Kaiba..."

No sooner than he spoke, the island burst into flames, crumbling into the ocean, debris everywhere.

_"M-Maybe he wanted to 'go down with the ship'...?" _Yugi said, his voice cracking a bit. Yes, Kaiba had been his adversary many times before, but that didn't mean he wished for the billionaire's death! Yami shook his head in disappointment. He felt as though he'd lost a brother.

"What's dat?" Joey exclaimed as he pressed his face into a window. From the smoke, the shape of a dragon could easily be made out, it rising higher and higher. Once the sun hit it, it let out a fearsome roar, revealing itself to be none other than...

"Blue Eyes White Dragon?" Yami said, shocked.

"I dun get it..." Joey said. Though as the dragon came closer, they all saw it wasn't simply a dragon; it was a Blue Eyes White Dragon Jet, piloted by none other than Seto Kaiba himself. "SAY WHAAAAAT?" Joey yelled. Everyone stared at the scene dumbfounded. "You mean ta tell me dey wer' safe all along? WHY I OUGHTTA...!" Joey pushed his way to the cockpit to proceed to radio and tell off the elder Kaiba brother, and was followed by Téa, Duke, Tristan, Serenity, and Ryou.

Yami however, sighed. He sat back on a bench, his back against the copter's wall. He closed his eyes, his arms folded. Oh, the things he'd be doing to his Aibou if they weren't on this thing, and on that damned blimp...

Kaiba's voice came on the loud speaker, interrupting Yami from his perverted thoughts. "I'll see you losers later! Especially **you,** Yugi! The battle between us will NEVER be over!" His laughter rang through the copter then faded away as his jet became farther and farther.

Yami shook his head, glancing down at the ground. Won't Kaiba ever learn...? Yugi seemed to have mimicked his thoughts, and he spoke to the elder teen. _"Well, I hope that one day Kaiba can put his anger aside, and move on."_

**/Yes./** Yami linked back, nodding a bit, folding his arms. He looked down on the ground, his mental voice trailing off, as though he was going to say something else, but opted not to, and closed the link. Yugi scootched closer to his darker half, laying his head on Yami's shoulder, a hand resting on the Pharaoh's leg. Yami gave a small smirk, and unfolded his arms, letting one grab Yugi's transparent hand. They stayed like that the entire ride home.

* * *

_"It's definitely nice to be home." _Yugi said to Yami as they sat in his bedroom. Yami still hadn't given the boy control of his body back, and he didn't understand why.

"Yes." Yami replied. "But we can't rest yet." Yami set their deck on Yugi's bedroom nightstand, sifting through all the cards.

Yugi noticed one card in particular, and picked it up. _"...? Joey's Red Eyes?_"

Yami simply nodded once.

Yugi stared at Yami for a second, understanding the look in his eyes. He nodded back in response, and regained control of their body, removing his pajama pants, putting on the jeans he wore earlier in the day.

**_"Oh, Aibou, how dare you taunt me like that..."_** Yami's now-transparent arms wrapped around the petite teen's waist from behind as Yugi buttoned his jeans. His face turned a deep shade of crimson, and Yami spoke.

"T-Taunt...?" A light gulp made him realize how dry his throat was. "B-But I wasn't-"

**_"But you were..."_**Yami insisted. **_"You have me here, alone, with you, and you take your pants off right in front of me, only to put on another pair?"_** Yami's hand ghosted over Yugi's shirt, deliberately brushing a nipple. Yugi bit his lip to stifle a gasp, and shivered.

"But I thought..."

**_"No, you thought right."_**Yami said, reading the younger's thoughts before he could speak them aloud, his hand now turning the teen around to face him, cupping his cheek. **_"Relax, Yugi... I simply want to show you how much you mean to me..."_**

Yugi's face became ever darker. "The faster I can get this done, the faster I can be with you, Yami." He spoke sheepishly, a small smile gracing his face.

Yami smirked, pulling Yugi flush against him, and kissed him gently, knowing that as a spirit, their kiss really couldn't get very heated, as contact was limited. **_"Then go, Aibou. Once you return, I will see to it that you... that you get a good night's sleep."_**A deep chuckle protruded from the baritone, one that caused Yugi to shiver with excitement.

He nodded, then ran out his bedroom door and down the stairs, being careful not to wake up his grandfather. _I've got to be careful not to wake Grandpa..._

"Yugi?" ...Darn. So close. Yugi turned slowly, to see his grandfather rubbing an eye. "Where are you going so early in the morning?"

"Just... Taking a walk, Grandpa! I promise, I won't be long." He gave a sincere smile, as Solomon Moto's eyes bore through him. "Is that ok?"

Solomon blinked, then sighed sleepily. "Alright." He resumed rubbing an eye. "Just come back soon, Yugi. I don't want you skipping breakfast."

As the early morning began to make itself known, Yugi met Joey in an alleyway. "We've made it, Joey. Through all the battles and hardships we've been thrown, we made it through them all. There's still one thing left to do." Yugi held the Black Eyes Red Dragon card in between his fingers. "I still have something of yours."

"Yeah." Joey replied with a smile on his face. "And it's time for me'ta earn it back, pal!"

"You're on." Both set their decks into their duel disks, and stood poised for battle.

"Ya bettah watch out! You taught me everything ya know about Duelin'!"

"Almost Joey. Almost."

They both flashed each other a smile, then called out that the same time, "Duel!"

* * *

Yugi stumbled into his room, dead tired. That was one of the most exhausting 'friendly duels' he'd ever had. He collapsed onto his bed, the digital clock in his bedroom reading '6:37'. "Ugh." With a plop, he practically threw himself onto his bed, landing on his stomach, burying his face in his pillow. Ah, thank the gods. It was good to finally be home. His eyes slowly began to close, though he fought the oncoming waves of sleep. They then opened in surprise as he felt a hand stroking at his back, comforting him. Yugi gave a soft smile as his eyelids closed fully, a content sigh escaping his lips. Yami always knew exactly how to relax him. He turned onto his side to face Yami, but the spirit merely shook his head, urging the boy to resume laying the way he was before. Yugi let loose a light laugh, and allowed another sigh of contentment to escape his lips, turning so that his back was facing Yami. This way, Yami could rub his back as he pleased, and Yugi would still be comfortable.

The spirit continued rubbing his counterpart's back, urging him to sleep. He had remained in the puzzle while Joey and Yugi had dueled earlier, letting Yugi 'test' his best friend for his Red Eyes. Joey had lost the duel, but Yugi gave him the card nonetheless, believing that Joey deemed himself a fully capable duelist. The duel was gruesome lengthwise, but it had to have been one of the most exciting duels the Egyptian had ever witnessed. He smirked as he felt Yugi fall fully asleep, the petite teen's breathing evening out into a steady pattern.

Yami soothed the boy for a while longer, then removed his hand from Yugi's back, wrapping his arms around him instead. All this time... these past duels with Marik and those controlled by him... Yami almost lost Yugi more than once. From the fire in the warehouse after dueling with the possessed Bandit Keith, to when they dueled with Joey after he fell into Marik's grasp, to Marik himself allowing Yugi to be devoured by the Shadow Realm right before Yami's eyes. All of those times...

He slightly tightened his grip around his Hikari, dreading how useless he felt at all the incidents that occurred. If anything had happened to Yugi, he didn't know what he'd do. He brushed a bang out of Yugi's face, lightly pressing his lips to the boy's cheek. **_"My_ _Aibou..." _**With that, he willed himself back into his soul room, allowing his vessel to rest.

He opened his eyes to see that he was in the rift between the two soul rooms of their body: His own and Yugi's. He looked down at his body to see that he wore no shirt, simply a pair of boxers, which were covered by a copy of Yugi's pajama pants.

Good. He hated wearing shirts to bed anyway.

He sauntered into the bleak corridors of his soul room, mazes of stairs and doors in every which direction. Eventually, he reached a large door, with the Millennium Puzzle etched into it. Yami opened the door, revealing a large room with an Egyptian style bed against the back wall. The bed was decorated with dark purple silken covers. As he walked over to get into bed, a small siren went off in the back of his head: Someone was entering his soul room.

With a snap of his fingers, shadows enshrouded Yami, and he was whisked from this one room to the foyer of his soul room's entrance. By arriving in such a manner, he shocked the unexpected intruder, who emitted a slight yelp as fell on his behind. Yami blinked and cocked his head to the side a bit, upon seeing who the intruder was.

"Aibou?" Well of course it was Yugi. The only other person to have invaded their soul rooms was Shadi, and that was under pressured circumstances. Why hadn't he figured it was the teen? Curse this somewhat lethargic state he was in. "Aibou, is something the matter?" He extended a hand to help the teen up.

Yugi accepted his Darkness's hand, and pulled himself up, a red blush dusting across his alabaster face. "Um... Well, I..."

Yami chuckled lightly. "Would you like to sleep with me?" A nod from Yugi confirmed Yami's suspicions, and he wrapped an arm around his younger counterpart's waist, starting to walk him to his bedroom. Ever since the incident with Bandit Keith and the warehouse fire, Yugi had a habit of coming to sleep in Yami's room every now and then as his body rested.

"W-Were you asleep already?" The amethyst eyed boy asked softly as they walked. "I'm sorry if you were."

Yami shook his head with a small smile. "No, Yugi. I hadn't even gotten into bed yet. I wanted to make sure you were asleep." They reached the room shortly, and Yami opened the door, allowing Yugi to walk in first. He guided the boy to his bed, allowing him once more to enter first, before climbing into the bed himself. Once they had gotten comfortable underneath the sheets, Yami pulled Yugi to him possessively, holding the younger teen to him. Crimson eyes were lidded, staring at nothing in particular, as amethyst ones looked over their protector's body.

Feeling daring, Yugi brought his hands up to Yami's chest, letting slender fingers dance over the pale skin. Yami shivered slightly at the touch, and looked down to Yugi with a slight smirk on his face. "Yugi...?"

Yugi simply gave Yami an innocent smile, before letting his digits venture to an uncovered nipple, brushing against it.

Yami bit back a groan, allowing his eyes to close. He buried his face into Yugi's hair and inhaled deeply, taking in his Aibou's scent. "Yugi..." His voice came slightly hoarse. "Aibou, do not start something you cannot finish..." He buried a hand in the back of Yugi's head, his slender fingers easily curling into the hair there.

"Maybe..." Yugi whispered as he moved his hands to each side of Yami's chest, brushing his thumbs over both his nipples now. "...I don't want to finish it." He lightly kissed the inside of Yami's neck once, and pulled the Egyptian closer to him. "Maybe I want _you_ to finish it."

A stab of lust shot through Yami like a rocket being set off, and in a flash, he had Yugi under him. He brought his head down, close enough that he could kiss Yugi if he wanted. "Don't tempt me... You still need to get to sleep, Yugi."

Yugi wrapped his arms around Yami's neck, and reached up slightly to capture Yami's lips with his own. The kiss was chasté at first, but quickly became heated. Yami's hand buried itself deeper into Yugi's black locks, pushing him closer, whereas one of Yugi's hands cupped the ex-pharaoh's cheek, bringing him closer as well. Yami mentally cursed as the need for air arose, and he broke away, both of the teens panting. Yugi's face was flushed, his amethyst eyes darkened slightly by lust and desire. He licked his lips quickly before speaking.

"You _did_ tell me that you'd make sure I'd get a good night's sleep, Yami..."

With that, Yami's smirk widened, and he leaned down, nipping at Yugi's earlobe. A seductive whisper made its way into Yugi's line of hearing. "I'm glad you remembered, Aibou... I thought you had forgotten..." Hands went to the smaller teen's pajama top, unbuttoning it quickly. The piece of clothing was soon out of sight and out of mind, as it was thrown behind Yami somewhere; where, he didn't care. He marveled at Yugi's creamy white skin beneath his fingers, gazing dotingly at the teen, taking in the sight of his body. "Gods, Yugi..."

Yugi blushed under Yami's gaze. He could never figure out what the spirit saw in him. He was short for one. He wasn't fat, but he wasn't exactly Mr. Muscles either. He simply didn't get it. His head turned away from the ex-pharaoh, his eyes trailing off to the side. Suddenly, his attention was pulled away, as a hand lightly cupped the side of his face, pulling him to stare at Yami.

"Yugi..." Yami's eyes were full of adoration and sincerity, though some dash of lust was undoubtedly traceable. "Do not question the affection I give you." God, it was like this man could read his mind.

Then again, he probably was reading his mind. Yami _was_ his other half after all.

"You are a kind soul, Aibou, with the purest heart I've seen in all my years." A tender kiss was laid upon Yugi's right cheek, and the teen blushed even darker. "You care for all those around you, thinking only of others when they are in danger, never of yourself. However..." The pad of Yami's thumb brushed against Yugi's cheek, making the younger teen smile a bit. "You sometimes forget about the fact that there are those who care about you in the same way. Your friends, your grandfather, and myself included."

Yugi's expression slightly faltered at that; he knew Yami spoke the truth. He did try leaving everything that opposed him and his friends up to himself, but for a good reason. He was protective of his friends. They were like a family to him. He didn't want to lose them, like he lost his mother and father...

"Aibou." Yugi snapped his attention back to the shirtless Egyptian before him. "I know not in depth how your friends express their love for you, nor how your grandfather expresses his love for you." Pulling his hand off Yugi's face, Yami trailed both his hands down the smaller teen's sides, stopping at the waistband of his night pants. "But I know how I express _my_ love for you, and I do so both verbally and physically." His typical victory smirk pasted on his face. "More specifically, intimately." He pulled Yugi's pajama pants down and off gently, then tossed them to the side, them too out of sight and mind.

Yugi shivered slightly as he felt his semi-bare body pressed against the silk sheets. Throughout the midst of all this, he had indeed become aroused; the evidence was visible at the crotch of his boxers. Yami glanced down, his smirk still plastered onto his face. A low-toned chuckle escaped his lips, one that made Yugi shudder in excitement. "Did I do that...?"

Yugi rolled his eyes playfully with a small smile. "Who else?"

Yami chuckled once more, the sound reverberating off his soulroom's bedroom walls. "Touché..." With that, he leaned down and seared the other's lips shut with his own. Yugi's eyes slid closed, a hand cupping the side of Yami's face, the other going to the back of his head, trying to push them together even more so. Yami's hands went to Yugi's hips, his fingers teasingly fiddling with his boxers.

The petite teen let loose a soft whine. Yami's hands were close... so close to his aching desire. Instinctively, he rolled his hips, trying to draw the older teen's attention away from his hips, and to his more intimate region.

The crimson eyed teen would be lying if he said his hikari's actions weren't a turn on. He was, however, thankful for Yugi's choice in pajama wear. It made the erection he had tolerable, for the moment. He felt the shift in Yugi's hips, and smirked. He loved being able to watch Yugi writhe underneath him, knowing that he'd be the only one to reduce the teen to a incoherent mess. Yami ravaged the boy with his mouth, trailing over his neck and chest with nips and kisses.

A moan from Yugi made the elder teen smirk even wider. Yami took that as a go-ahead to descend upon the younger's body. A hand moved up, allowing a thumb to brush over a taut nipple. Yugi gasped at the contact, and Yami gave merely a chuckle in response. He then tweaked the younger's nipple, rolling the nub between his fingers. As for the opposing nipple, Yami glanced at Yugi, giving off a devious look. Before Yugi could even form a thought of what to say, Yami swiped his tongue across his other nipple, teasing the little bud.

A shiver went through Yugi's back. Gods, Yami constantly teased him. He bucked his hips up once more, wanting to draw the ex-pharaoh's attention back to where it was earlier. The move didn't go unnoticed by the elder teen, who glanced down at Yugi's purely blatant, albeit clothed erection. Yami hummed in contentment, and let his free hand go down to the boy's boxers, ghosting his fingers against the bulge that resided there.

"H-Haaa..." Yugi could feel his member throbbing, the swollen phallus raging against the cotton prison it was entrapped in. "Y-Yami, please...!" He just needed his boxers off. Yami could do as he pleased, but he just wanted those darned boxers off!

Whether the Egyptian read Yugi's thoughts, or through sheer coincidence, Yami slowly removed his Aibou's boxers, freeing his encased erection. As Yami continued to orally rampage the alabaster land of Yugi's torso, his hands worked on the younger's lower half. One attached to a hip, the thumb on said hand lightly rubbing the skin beneath it in small circles. The other hand, however, traced Yugi's member, from the base, up the shaft, to the head. Gently, he brushed the tip of his thumb against the head. This earned him merely a stifled groan.

Oh no. If he was going to pleasure his Hikari, he'd have to hear **alot** more than that.

Smirking, the elder teen moved his hand to Yugi's unoccupied hip, and slowly let his mouth trail downwards. Once he reached the younger's navel, he dipped his tongue inside it once, watching as Yugi shivered. He knew Yugi wasn't fond of the action, but by the gods, the look on his face, the way his body moved when he did it... It was hard to resist not to.

Again, the ex-pharaoh began his descent, giving nips, licks, and kisses to the sensitive pale skin, until he reached the most intimate part of his Aibou's body. He glanced up at Yugi, whose face was flushed. An eyebrow was raised concerningly, as though asking for permission to continue. Through shallow breaths, Yugi nodded. The younger teen's knees were raised slightly, his feet planted on the bed, spreading his legs a bit more to allow Yami full access to his exposed body.

Taking a hand, Yami smirked, and fully grasped Yugi's member, replacing his previous feather light touches with a firmer one. He pumped his light's member slowly, taking in the way the boy reacted with a smirk.

Yugi tried to bite the inside of his cheek to keep from crying out, but to no avail. He moaned lightly, his hands clutching tightly at the sheets beneath him as each pump became a bit faster and firmer than the one before. Gods, the pleasurable torture was insane. Suddenly, the teen's eyes widened in shock as the tip of his erection was engulfed in a moist heat, a tongue stroking beneath the head. His hand went down to the back of Yami's head, his fingers entangling in the black hair. "M-More... Yami, please... M-More...!"

Were his mouth not already preoccupied, the elder male would have chuckled. To be able to reduce Yugi to this, to make the younger teen beg to him for pleasure... Ra, the gods had blessed him with his erotic hikari. Wordlessly, he went a bit further down on Yugi, one hand still on the base of Yugi's erection. His tongue stroked the underside of his Aibou's member, feeling the vein there pulse in time with his heartbeat. His hand began stroking what had yet to fit into his mouth. Above him, Yugi's cries of pleasure became increasingly louder, and his spare hand went to join its twin at the back of Yami's head. The Egyptian winced slightly as Yugi's fingers tangled into and fisted his hair, though he quickly received incoherent words of apology through their mental link, courtesy of Yugi.

As Yami continued to orally pleasure the boy, he sent a mental wave of comfort through the link, letting Yugi know all was well, and he was fine. He barely caught sight of Yugi physically nodding before the younger threw his head back, a light sheen of sweat coming into view. He could tell that Yugi was close to release, and only had his suspicions confirmed when the younger could no longer keep hold of his thoughts, and their mind-link was flooded with pleasure driven babbling and incoherence. With this, Yami no longer restrained himself. He took his hand off the base of Yugi's member, and moved it to an unoccupied hip. Now, with both hands on Yugi's hips, Yami raised the boy's lower half a bit, and sunk down further on him, deep throating him fully.

The cry of ecstasy that ripped out of Yugi's mouth was beautifully erotic; Yami could find no other way to describe it. He sucked him hard, until the last thing he heard before liquid pleasure filled his mouth, was his own name being cried out in pleasure from his hikari. Yami caught all Yugi's body had to offer, though some escaped and slowly trickled down from the corner of his mouth. He pulled off his younger counterpart and effortlessly wiped away the excess liquid from his face. Silently, Yami sat up, and swallowed nearly all that was in his mouth.

Nearly.

He inserted a single finger into his own mouth, coating the digit with a mixture of what was left of Yugi's release and his own saliva. As he added a second finger, he watched Yugi as he basked in the afterglow of his orgasm. The younger teen's breathing was ragged, his chest heaving up and down. An arm laid across his eyes, the other bent at an angle beside him. All-in-all, Yami thought Yugi looked extremely arousing in this way. If he hadn't have been turned on by anything prior, he definitely would have been now. A third finger now entered Yami's mouth, and once he had deemed it wet enough, he slid the three total digits from his mouth, swallowing the remainder of the fluid concoction.

A hand went to Yugi's upper leg, a thumb comfortingly brushing against the skin there. Yugi had caught his breath by the point, and removed his arm from covering his eyes. The action on his leg caught his attention, and he glanced at Yami. The elder teen flashed him the three wet fingers, and Yugi nodded, bracing himself. He felt himself tense up, and cursed mentally. He knew he had to relax, otherwise he'd feel pain. When he didn't feel Yami's fingers preparing him, he opened his eyes(not even realizing he had closed them in the first place) and looked to his elder counterpart confusedly.

It took him a second to realize Yami was over him now, instead of between his legs. Upon the ex-pharaoh's face was his typical poker face, which made Yugi shiver slightly. He could never tell what the elder teen was thinking when he had that mask on, and now was no exception. Yugi gave a light gulp. Had he done something to upset the spirit? Or was Yami having second thoughts? What if-

"Yugi..." Yugi blinked as he heard his name, and took in the Egyptian's composed expression. A soft smile crossed the elder teen's features, and he leaned down slightly to gently press his lips against Yugi's. He felt the younger teen relax against the small show of affection before pulling back. "Relax... I can't prepare you if you're tensed." Yami moved from Yugi's lips to his neck, lightly nipping at the soft skin there. "You can trust me."

Yugi blushed darkly, and submissively tilted his head to the side, giving Yami more room to do as he wished to his neck. "I-I know I can trust you, Yami. But if you were in m-my position, then-"

He never got the chance to finish speaking, as Yami kissed him again, though not as gently this time around. Regardless, he relaxed against Yami once more, moving a hand up to the side of his face, pulling him closer in an effort to deepen the kiss. He could feel Yami smirk against the kiss, and Yugi nearly asked what was so funny, until he felt a finger circle his entrance, then slowly slip inside of him.

At that moment, Yugi broke the kiss, pulling back. His eyes closed and narrowed at the intruder, and he grit his teeth as a dully pained, uncomfortable feeling quickly settled in. He could feel his toes curling as his interior muscles tensed, trying the push the alien object out of him. A barely audible whine escaped from him unwillingly.

Yami softly 'shh-ed' his partner, sending waves of affection through their mind-link. This wasn't their first time having sex, but each time they did, Yugi would always get nervous at this part. Yami partially thought it was Yugi still considered himself virgin. After all, they were only souls in their current state; physically Yugi _was_ indeed still pure. However, Yami did realize a few times back that once they arrived at the preparation stage, Yugi easily relaxed when Yami showed him small bits of affection. Kisses, nuzzles, the occasional nip of an earlobe, and even loving words practically morphed Yugi into silly putty in Yami's hands.

Slowly, Yami pumped his finger in and out of Yugi. Once he heard his aibou begin to softly moan at each pump, Yami then added a second finger. Again, Yugi tensed, his eyes welling with tears. Yami's fingers remained motionless as he leaned forward to brush away any tears that fell with his free hand. Placing his forehead against Yugi's, the ex-pharaoh pecked his counterpart's lips, then spoke to him through their mind-link. What was said was mostly loving nothings, and Yami smirked when he even got a giggle out of Yugi.

Then, he slowly scissored Yugi, and thanked the gods when the boy didn't tense up again. As he prepared Yugi, he ran his free hand through the other's hair, kissing him repeatedly, pulling back each time before the kiss became too heated. Yami contemplated on adding a third finger and ultimately opted for it once he felt two fingers were no longer enough. Again, Yugi tensed, his nails lightly raking at Yami's back. The spirit showed no trace of pain from the action, and simply stayed still. He then slowly scissored him in a triangle shape, then pumped his fingers in Yugi, moving his fingers around, trying to find, to locate-

"Yami!"

Bingo.

The ex-pharaoh thrust his fingers up into Yugi's prostate once more, making the teen cry out his name. Yami repeated this action, getting chills from his aibou's melodic voice, begging and pleading him. Finally, when he could no longer take it, Yami withdrew his fingers from Yugi, who hissed softly at the loss of the full feeling, then wiped his fingers on his pajama pants. Finally, he shimmied out of his garments, giving a husky groan as his own erection was finally freed, and positioned himself in front of Yugi's entrance. His brows furrowed in slight confusion as he thought.

Yugi's eyes widened slightly. He knew from experience that Yami's member was INDEED larger than his fingers, and that fact alone intimidated him. He gulped lightly and closed his eyes, bracing himself for penetration. When he felt nothing, he opened an eye, and nearly laughed at the sight above him.

There, arm outstretched, fingers wiggling, was Yami who was reaching for something. The look on his face was pure determination, and Yugi could only wonder what in Ra's name he was doing. "Y-Yami?" He asked, trying not to laugh.

Yami mentally smirked when he heard Yugi's voice. There were no traces of uncertainty in it; only amusement. When Yami realized that he had forgotten lubrication to make his initial penetration easier for Yugi, he quickly thought up of another way to get the younger to relax. After all, kisses and meaningful sentiments would only work for so long. "Aibou..." Yami convincingly feigned a sheepish tone in his voice. "I _might_ have forgotten to get the lubrication..." His voice trailed off, as though his was embarrassed by his 'flub'.

Yugi let out a light laugh, then turned over, reaching to the dark wood nightstand by Yami's bed, opening the drawer. He pulled out the tube of lube that lied inside and handed it to Yami. It was moments like this that comforted him. Yami was supposed to be this almighty Pharaoh, but moments like this reminded him that Yami was just as human as he was, and as much of a teen as he was. The thought made him smile.

The elder teen hadn't _really_ forgotten about getting the lube. Even if he had, he would have easily used Shadow Magic to will it to himself. However, his little 'idea' worked, and he had gotten Yugi to relax once more. Yami smiled softly, grabbing the tube from Yugi, and leaned down, kissing him on his cheek. "Thank you, aibou." The blush that crossed Yugi's face made the Egyptian smirk once more, and he chuckled softly. He then pulled back, sitting up, placing himself between Yugi's legs. He popped open the cap on the tube and poured a generous amount of lube onto his palm. He cringed a bit at the odd texture of the substance, rolling his fingers around in it. With a shrug, he applied it to his member, groaning lightly at the feeling of the cool applicant on his heated member. Once done, he wiped his hand on the sheets and positioned himself in front of Yugi, the tip of his member placed outside of his entrance.

A gulp from Yugi made Yami look up, and he saw the younger teen's face was flushed. Yami placed both his hands on Yugi's hips, and exhaled. "Yugi, relax..." He leaned over and kissed his hikari full on the mouth, heatedly. Yugi's eyes widened from the unexpected kiss, but easily gave into it. He allowed Yami passage into his mouth and reveled at the feeling of their tongues clashing, pressing against each other as though giving a mock performance of what was to come.

Then Yami moved. He pushed his hips forward, quickly burying himself to the hilt inside of Yugi. The younger teen pulled back from their heated kiss, and closed his eyes, narrowing his brows. It felt as though Yami had shoved a hot metal rod through him, ripping him apart from the inside. He did nothing to stop the tears that trailed out of his eyes.

Above him, Yami was breathing heavily. The ex-pharaoh felt chills go down his spine from the intense heat that surrounded him. Yugi's walls clamped harshly around him; his body's attempt at expelling the foreign object that intruded inside him. The elder teen trembled in place slightly, the feeling of Yugi around him almost too overwhelming. He did all he could to restrain himself from simply screwing his partner into the mattress. **_/Y-Yugi..._/ **The spirit's mental voice came a bit strained. **_/T-Tell me when I can move.../_**

Yugi nodded, and wrapped his arms around Yami's neck, holding him close. He sniffled once, which alerted Yami that his aibou was crying. He moved a hand from Yugi's hip to the side of his face, brushing away the tears. "Don't worry, Aibou. I've got you." A kiss was laid upon the younger teen's temple, a comforting hum of contentment soon following. Slowly, Yami felt Yugi's walls let up on him, though he didn't move. He had told Yugi to tell him when to go, and would only move at the younger's request.

A few seconds passed before Yugi let out a breath he didn't even know he was holding. The younger teen nuzzled the side of Yami's face, closing his eyes. Though this time, his eyes were closed peacefully, not scrunched up in pain. A blush crossed Yugi's face, and he gave his mental command.

_/Yami? Go.../_

Yami replied with a nod, looking down at himself as he pulled out of Yugi slowly, only to push back in. Yami's eyes darkened with lust at that. The sight of him taking Yugi, pulling out only to fill him up to the brim, was truly an erotic sight. His movements were slow and even, only wanting to get Yugi used to his size.

A light moan brought Yami's gaze back to Yugi. The smaller teen's eyes were lidded, want and desire flooding them. Yami smirked, and captured Yugi's lips in a harsh kiss, as he continued their slow love-making pace. Not after long, Yugi grew used to feeling Yami inside him, and was no longer fond of this slow pace. He absentmindedly rolled his hips, which forced a sharp groan to emit from Yami. Yugi stopped, thinking the groan to be one of pain. He broke away from the kiss, looking concerned. "Yami?" He moved a hand from behind the spirit's neck to cup his face and get a better look at him. "Yami are you alri-" He stopped mid-sentence when he saw Yami's expression.

Crimson eyes were darkened purely by love and desire. The smirk on Yami's face made it clear to Yugi that the groan wasn't a painful one, but a pleasureful one instead. Yugi's face flushed red out of embarrassment, but before he could form a single thought, Yami chuckled, that deep baritone voice bouncing around in his ears.

"Feeling daring, are we, Yugi?"

With that, Yami pulled out and thrust in, more quickly than before. Yugi's eyes snapped open at that, an ungodly moan of Yami's name escaping him. A smirk crossed over the elder teen's face. It seemed Yugi's prostate was willing to really come out and play today.

Again, Yami thrust repeatedly into his doppelganger, though now at an increasingly fast pace. Adrenaline pumped through him as a chorus of different sounds came together and produced beautiful music. Yugi's wanton moans, Yami's own lowly-toned groans, and the sound of skin slapping against skin all meshed together in gorgeous harmony, harmony which Yami reveled in.

The explicitly intimate moments he shared with Yugi were precious to him, and he cherished them greatly. To be able to give all of yourself to a person you loved so deeply, to be able to know with extreme confidence that they accepted your feelings and reciprocated them fully, to show the other what they meant to you, with nothing barred...

Sanctuary.

Yugi was his sanctuary. Yugi was his place of refuge, of reserve. Yugi was his safety net. How could one so young, so pure of heart, be able to drive the Pharaoh mad in such a way? For him to be able to give into his sanctuary with such ease comforted him. With Yugi, he needed not his past memories, but the ones he made now, and the ones he was going to make. So long as he could always turn to Yugi, then he was content.

Groaning, the Pharaoh hung his head as he continuously rammed into his partner, whom had wrapped his legs around the elder teen at some point. Nails clawed at Yami's back, and in return, Yami's nails dug into Yugi's hips. Sloppily, Yami ravaged Yugi's exposed neck, the latter of which's head had been thrown backwards as he cried out in ecstasy.

"Ah! Y-Yami!"

Yami smirked once more as he Yugi's legs tighten around him, and the younger's control on his end of the link flew out of he window, letting jumbled and disconnected strings of what Yami could only assume to be sentences signal the younger's impending release. With this, one of Yami's hands let go of a hip, and moved it to Yugi's strained member. Wrapping his hand around it, Yami began to pump Yugi in time with his thrusts. Within seconds, Yugi's eyes open wide, and he came with a cry of Yami's name.

"YAMI!"

Yugi's essence sprayed onto their chests and stomachs, and some spilled over onto Yami's hand. Yami groaned lowly as Yugi's walls clenched tightly around him, and within a few more thrusts, he came as well, inside of his little lover.

Breathing heavily, Yami used what little strength he had left to pull out of Yugi, and roll to his side. Both teens reveled in the afterglow of their love-making, their breathing erratic. Yugi curled up into Yami's side, and Yami, in response, wrapped his arms around his partner, and pulled him up onto his chest, so that he may lay there. The Pharaoh smirked as he felt Yugi nuzzle a cheek into his bare chest.

Bringing a hand to cup the younger's face, Yami leaned forward a bit, and gently pressed his lips to Yugi's forehead. "My beautiful Aibou..."

Yugi blushed dark red at that, and wrapped his arms around Yami's neck. "Stop that..."

"What? I can have my way with you and you're fine, but the minute I complement you, you become shy once more?" Yami chuckled at that, and took his hand off Yugi's face so that he could run his fingers through Yugi's hair.

Yugi buried his face into Yami's neck, for he was sure he'd invented a new shade of red by now.

Yami sighed with a smirk, tilting his head to the side a bit to give Yugi a bit more room to nuzzle and get comfortable if he wished. Keeping Yugi close to him with his spare hand, Yami whispered softly into his hikari's ear. "I love you, Aibou."

Yugi came out of his little 'hiding spot', and looked at Yami in awe. His eyes became flooded with emotion as he pressed his lips to the Egyptian's harshly, kissing him. He pulled back, a large smile on his face. "I love you too, Yami." He went back to putting his head in the crook of the Pharaoh's neck, and gave a hum of contentment. "My brave Pharaoh..."

Yami arched a brow at that. "_Your_ brave Pharaoh?" Smirking, Yami closed his eyes. "I think I like the sound of that."

Yugi laughed softly, feeling sleep wash over him. Before succumbing to Dreamland, he reached up and pressed a soft kiss to Yami's cheek, letting all his emotions seep through their link.

Yami felt warm inside, feeling all the love and adoration the younger felt for him come through their link. He opened his eyes and turned his head to give the boy one final kiss to his temple. Then, not wanting to disturb Yugi, Yami called upon his Shadow Magic, using it to pull the covers up over them.

Yami closed his eyes, relaxing profusely. Here he felt at peace. He was in Nirvana. He was on Cloud Nine. This was perfect, this was...

Sanctuary.


End file.
